He probably is one of the worst, but his story is actually a very good one.

Harvey Esajas, born in 1974 in Amsterdam, was a good friend with Clarence Seedorf and was only the one of all those who have played for Milan, to raise the Milan fans eyebrows.
Harvey and Seedorf became famous when they played on Ajax's youth team. Both had parents from Suriname. Harvey - who were dubbed as the "new Rijkaard" - was the best of the two and moved away already at the age of 18 because he couldn’t break into the Ajax’s A-team.

Next stop was Feyenoord. There he ended up fighting with an opponent in a pre-season match against the amateur team Helders Selectie. Then he went to Groningen and then on to a few smaller Dutch clubs. When Seedorf, who then moved to Madrid, got a place on the youth team of Real Madrid, Harvey didn’t hesitate.

It was in 1999, Real Madrid had just won the Champions League, and Harvey failed to get out of the terrible situation he found himself in. Instead he started his own companies. First a nightclub called Metropolis and then an antique shop. He also took a job in a circus where he tore down the tents and worked behind the bar. Harvey smoked two packs cigarettes a day and when the circus packed down, he became a tourist guide around Madrid.

In January 2004, Seedorf called him again. He had now moved over to AC Milan and he asked Harvey to come over to see the derby against Inter. When the retired circus worker lands at the airport, Seedorf exclaims: `Jesus Christ, you are fatter than ever`. Harvey weighed 120 kilos at the time and had not played football for over three years.

After a few days at Milanello, Harvey said: `F*ck sake Clarence, so here I have never thought you could feel like this as a football player. You get around, you meet with your children, you are like a big family. Had I had it like this, I still wanted to play football. Don’t you have a place in the team for me? asked Harvey jokingly. "Seedorf took the joke seriously and asked Ancelotti if there was a local club in Milano that could take him. The Milan coach (Ancelotti) replied that Harvey could train with the Primavera team on the assumption that he really showed will and hunger during this period.

The following morning, the staff came from Milan Lab and woke him up half past seven. They told him about the plans for the next months: early wake up, porridge for breakfast and cooked vegetables for dinner, five hours of training per day. day, no alcohol and no cigarettes.

For Milan Lab, there was an experiment to see how much a person could withstand. For Harvey there was a chance to get his life back on track. Some nights he cried himself to sleep, but he was determined to show Ancelotti that he would be able manage this. After four months he weighed 85 kilos.

In the summer, Milan’s Vice President Galliani said, "We will offer you an A-team contract." Harvey answered, "It's the first time in my career someone believes in me. And that's AC Milan! Are you joking with me!? Asked Harvey. Immediately afterwards, he tells Ancelotti that he has reached his goal, he no longer seems like the worst player in the team. The coach asked curious about who Harvey thought was on the same level as him in the team. `There are actually two players according to him – “Kaladze and Serginho”. Ancelotti laughed and said, "Ok, I do not know if I agree. But if you think that, it's fine. "

The Dutchman asked if he could play matches with the Milan A-team. Ancelotti replied that it was the first time he had received such a request from a Primavera team player and Ancelotti gave him his will. After some matches where Harvey did well with the Primavera, he was called up to the Coppa Italia match against Palermo, where the match was played at the San Siro.

When the match time stood on 80 minutes, Ancelotti told Harvey: `Warm up, you're to be subbed in. Harvey answered with a smile: “Of course, mister in an ironically way”. "I'm serious, you're going to play left back, said Ancelotti" When Ambrosini jogged out of the pitch, the big San Siro screen showed a picture of Harvey when he was overweight and San Siro publicum was in ecstasy.

Harvey touched the ball seven times and did not make a single mistake. In one situation, he ran past 4 players on the edge of the pitch and crossed the ball into Jon Dahl Tomasson, who put the ball aside of the goal. Every time he touched the ball, the cheers rose from the audience. After the match, he ran honorary rounds for several minutes with San Siro watching him. "

The best thing about this story? He got called up to the team for the Champions League final in 2005 in Istanbul.

He probably is one of the worst, but his story is actually a very good one.

Harvey Esajas, born in 1974 in Amsterdam, was a good friend with Clarence Seedorf and was only the one of all those who have played for Milan, to raise the Milan fans eyebrows.
Harvey and Seedorf became famous when they played on Ajax's youth team. Both had parents from Suriname. Harvey - who were dubbed as the "new Rijkaard" - was the best of the two and moved away already at the age of 18 because he couldn’t break into the Ajax’s A-team.

Next stop was Feyenoord. There he ended up fighting with an opponent in a pre-season match against the amateur team Helders Selectie. Then he went to Groningen and then on to a few smaller Dutch clubs. When Seedorf, who then moved to Madrid, got a place on the youth team of Real Madrid, Harvey didn’t hesitate.

It was in 1999, Real Madrid had just won the Champions League, and Harvey failed to get out of the terrible situation he found himself in. Instead he started his own companies. First a nightclub called Metropolis and then an antique shop. He also took a job in a circus where he tore down the tents and worked behind the bar. Harvey smoked two packs cigarettes a day and when the circus packed down, he became a tourist guide around Madrid.

In January 2004, Seedorf called him again. He had now moved over to AC Milan and he asked Harvey to come over to see the derby against Inter. When the retired circus worker lands at the airport, Seedorf exclaims: `Jesus Christ, you are fatter than ever`. Harvey weighed 120 kilos at the time and had not played football for over three years.

After a few days at Milanello, Harvey said: `F*ck sake Clarence, so here I have never thought you could feel like this as a football player. You get around, you meet with your children, you are like a big family. Had I had it like this, I still wanted to play football. Don’t you have a place in the team for me? asked Harvey jokingly. "Seedorf took the joke seriously and asked Ancelotti if there was a local club in Milano that could take him. The Milan coach (Ancelotti) replied that Harvey could train with the Primavera team on the assumption that he really showed will and hunger during this period.

The following morning, the staff came from Milan Lab and woke him up half past seven. They told him about the plans for the next months: early wake up, porridge for breakfast and cooked vegetables for dinner, five hours of training per day. day, no alcohol and no cigarettes.

For Milan Lab, there was an experiment to see how much a person could withstand. For Harvey there was a chance to get his life back on track. Some nights he cried himself to sleep, but he was determined to show Ancelotti that he would be able manage this. After four months he weighed 85 kilos.

In the summer, Milan’s Vice President Galliani said, "We will offer you an A-team contract." Harvey answered, "It's the first time in my career someone believes in me. And that's AC Milan! Are you joking with me!? Asked Harvey. Immediately afterwards, he tells Ancelotti that he has reached his goal, he no longer seems like the worst player in the team. The coach asked curious about who Harvey thought was on the same level as him in the team. `There are actually two players according to him – “Kaladze and Serginho”. Ancelotti laughed and said, "Ok, I do not know if I agree. But if you think that, it's fine. "

The Dutchman asked if he could play matches with the Milan A-team. Ancelotti replied that it was the first time he had received such a request from a Primavera team player and Ancelotti gave him his will. After some matches where Harvey did well with the Primavera, he was called up to the Coppa Italia match against Palermo, where the match was played at the San Siro.

When the match time stood on 80 minutes, Ancelotti told Harvey: `Warm up, you're to be subbed in. Harvey answered with a smile: “Of course, mister in an ironically way”. "I'm serious, you're going to play left back, said Ancelotti" When Ambrosini jogged out of the pitch, the big San Siro screen showed a picture of Harvey when he was overweight and San Siro publicum was in ecstasy.

Harvey touched the ball seven times and did not make a single mistake. In one situation, he ran past 4 players on the edge of the pitch and crossed the ball into Jon Dahl Tomasson, who put the ball aside of the goal. Every time he touched the ball, the cheers rose from the audience. After the match, he ran honorary rounds for several minutes with San Siro watching him. "

The best thing about this story? He got called up to the team for the Champions League final in 2005 in Istanbul.